South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. will set up operations in a former US
naval base in the Philippines, an investment that may usher in the return of
shipbuilding there.
A Philippine affiliate of US investment firm
Cerberus Capital Management LP will lease a portion of a shipyard in Subic Bay
Freeport Zone to HD Hyundai, the world’s largest shipbuilder. HD Hyundai, which is also into heavy industry and
energy sectors, will initially build offshore wind platforms in the yard.
Cerberus Senior
Managing Director Alexander Benard told a briefing on Wednesday that HD Hyundai
is expected to start constructing wind platforms within the next 12 to 18
months.
The South Korean company is projecting to invest
about $550 million over 10 years and generate around 10,000 jobs within three
to five years, according to the Philippine government.
“We welcome HD
Hyundai’s investment that will not only open new doors for our offshore wind
industry, but will also bring maritime manufacturing back to Subic and
eventually restore the glory days of shipbuilding to our shores,” President
Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said during the announcement of the Cerberus-HD Hyundai
partnership on Tuesday at the presidential palace.
The South Korean group
is a key supplier and maintenance provider for the Philippine Navy. In 2022, it
won a $573 million contract to build six units of 2,400-ton offshore
patrol vessels for the Southeast Asian nation’s navy.
The Philippines was among the top shipbuilding
nations in the world until a local unit of South Korea’s Hanjin, which operated
the Subic Bay yard, collapsed in 2019. Cerberus took over the yard in 2022 and has since attracted other tenants, including subsea
cable and global logistics companies, Marcos said. “The Philippines is also
quite excited to see the realization of Cerberus’ plans, including its interest
in microelectronics, semiconductors, and critical metals,” Marcos added.